The Cornell Center for Materials Research JumpStart program is funded by Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR), designed to assist New York State small businesses develop and improve their products through university collaborations; the ultimate goal is revenue growth and job creation. JumpStart projects receive up to $5,000 in matching funds for project costs that include faculty and research staff, facilities, services, supplies, and materials. Since its inception 51 companies have benefited from this program. During the upcoming semester four companies will participate in the following collaborations:

JumpStart Award Winning Companies:

Cerion Enterprises, Rochester, NY will collaborate with Professor Emmanuel Giannelis, Materials Science and Engineering, to develop a new nano ceria material that has a very high weight suspension density for use as a novel lubricant/anticorrosion material.

ENrG Inc., Buffalo, NY will collaborate with Professor Bruce Van Dover, Materials Science and Engineering, to develop coatings for flexible ceramic substrates to provide a suitable surface for the growth of semiconductor materials; ultimately, as a roll-to-roll process for the production of PV solar cells.

SensGard LLC., Pittsford, NY will collaborate with Professor Anil Netravali, Fiber Science and Apparel Design, to develop new foam materials that will improve the performance and comfort of hearing protection products.

The Decorated Cookie Company/Corso’s Cookies, Syracuse, NY will collaborate with Professor Carmen Moraru, Department of Food Science, to develop a fast-drying frosting for use in their cookie decorating process.

About NYSTAR

Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR) supports collaborative industry/academic partnerships to foster integrated approaches for developing and commercializing innovative technologies. NYSTAR serves as a resource for small and start-up technology companies.

About the Cornell Center for Materials Research (CCMR)

The Cornell Center for Materials Research is a National Science Foundation and New York State funded interdisciplinary research center at Cornell University whose mission is to advance, explore, and exploit the forefront of the science and engineering of advanced materials. This objective is pursued through fundamental experimental and theoretical studies. Three other complementary functions complete the CCMR’s mission: educational outreach to teachers and students; industrial outreach and knowledge transfer; and the operation of shared instrumentation in support of materials research both on and off campus.

Founded in 2009, Cerion Enterprises LLC is a nanotechnology company with an expertise first developed by their scientists for photographic film emulsions and dispersions during their tenure at Eastman Kodak. Their patented expertise is the ability to make, manipulate and suspend uniform, non-agglomerated nanoparticles down to 1nm in aqueous or non-aqueous media and then quickly and cost effectively transition this synthesis process to the industrial scale. Founded by seasoned entrepreneurs and world-class material scientists, Cerion partners with industry and academia, where their technology and expertise can improve current products and enable the development of transformative new ones across several areas including biologics, coatings and catalysis.

SensGard’s lightweight hearing protection directs damaging sound away from the ear into sound chambers where it is dampened and canceled. The university developed and patented technology enables users to converse and hear important sounds in noisy environments without the need to remove their hearing protection. The unique technology is based on sound physics meaning no bulk, batteries or electronics required.

About The Decorated Cookie Company/Corso’s Cookies

Founded in 2001, Corso’s Cookies is a leading manufacturer of hand-decorated shortbread cookies available through online retail as well as retail stores. For more information, go to www.corsoscookies.com, or call 1-800-465-7775.